In this edition I talk about treating osteoarthritis with massage and herbs. A very prevalent disease from 50 years onwards. The second topic is dementia/ Alzheimer's prevention. Treating modifiable factors such as high blood pressure or insomnia as examples and herbs and supplements to help you if you have mild cognitive decline or the beginning of Alzheimer's. 

Also, re Xmas the clinic will be closed on the public holidays of Sat 25 Dec to Tuesday 28 Dec and reopen on Wed 29 Dec. Over the New Year period I will be closed on Sat 1 Jan to Monday 3 Jan  and reopen on Tues 4 Jan. 

What can you do about your Osteoarthritis?

" Arthritis is the swelling and tenderness of one or more joints. The main symptoms are joint pain and stiffness, which typically worsens with age". Mayo Clinic

Sounds familiar! There are over 100 different types of arthritis as a result of joint degeneration, injury, autoimmune disorders or metabolic disorders. I am going to talk about Osteoarthritis a degenerative disease and by far the most common. Once we are diagnosd with arthritis we assume we will have permanent pain and we will not be able to physically function properly and we can get anxious too. But there are ways to help counteract this belief and treatments that can help.

We have cartilage in our joints and to keep the cartilage healthy over our lifetime we need to do the following:

• Drink at least 2L of water a day to prevent dehydration and thus destruction of cartilage. 
• Chondrocytes are found in cartilage and are responsible for creating cartilage. 
• To keep these chondrocytes productive the joint needs activity such as walking, tennis, swimming, dancing etc and load in the form of weights or orthobionomy massage to maintain normal cartilage structure and function. Inactivity of the joint has been shown to lead to degradation of cartilage. 
• Make sure bones are aligned correctly. and muscle strength is even.

Treatments 

In the medical line of drugs there are many that you will know and use such as:

• Panadol osteo
• Non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs such as Mobic and Neurofen. There are side effects which you have to be very aware of. 
• Platelet-rich plassma(PRP) which is injected into the joint to help ease pain and inflammation. 

In the herbal medicine area there are:

1. Anti inflammatory herbs such as Boswellia, Cucurmin, Devils Claw and Guiacum resin in combination with celery seed which helps to remove fluid around the joint and other herbs that improve circulation to the joint.
2. Fish oils - anti inflammatory in nature
3. PEA - a new compound to help reduce pain,inflammation and swelling in the joint.

Non drug treatments include:

• 150 mins per week of moderate to vigorous exercise, - which includes strengthening, walking/running, cardiovascular and balancing exercises
• Weight loss
• Massage, physio, chiro, osteopath
• Exercise physiology, Pilates

Exercise gets fluid and blood to the joints and muscles. 

Diet

An anti inflammatory diet is the best one to have, such as the Mediterranean diet. This includes lots of vegetables, nuts, seeds, fruit and fish and small serves of red meat. Inflammatory foods are mostly found in packets such as cakes, pastries, chocolate, sweets and also too much red meat and cheese. 

As a matter of interest " People with osteoarthritis were twice as likely to describe their health as 'poor', among those aged 45 and over" - Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Even if osteoarthritis is the only issue, this belief will lead to poorer health overall.

Neurological diseases such as dementia - how lifestyle and supplements cam support the progression of these diseases

I recently attended a webinar on this difficult topic and thought I would pass on some interesting information on the features of Alzheimer's disease, disease drivers and how as a herbalist I can help at the early intervention stage and inhibition of progression of the disease.

Features of aging and Alzheimer's

1. Normal ageing is minor lapses in memory, misplacing items but then find them! You can plan and problem solve, with just a few errors. 
2. In Alzheimer's - Memory loss especially for recently learned information. Repeating yourself.Forgetting important dates and appointments. Forgetting where items are placed and unable to retrace them. Difficulty following a plan such as a recipe, or paying bills.

Historical prevalence

1in10 people get dementia after 65 years. 4 in 10 get dementia after 85 years. The rate is higher in women.Bearing in mind Alzheimer's comes under the umbrella of dementia.

Risk factors to develop dementia

Modifiable

• Cardiovascular disease
• High blood pressure
• Metabolic syndrome
• Overweight
• Smoking
• Depression
• Insomnia

Non-modifiable risk factors

• Age
• Family history - If one parent had the disease you have a 10-30% chance of getting it, whereas if both parents had dementia you have 30 to 90% chance of getting dementia.

Major disease drivers

• Inflammatory factors going on in the brain
• This causes ameloid plaques to form plus neurofibrillary tangles.
• Genetics with dominant genes for AD on the chromosomes.

Use of complimentary medicines to help reduce inflammation

• A new substance called Plasmalogens or PEA for short has had great success in reducing inflammation in chronic diseases such as Parkinson's disease, osteoarthritis  and now Alzheimer's disease. 
• NAC a precurser to glutathioine  an anti oxidant showed poromise on Alzheimers after 6 months.
• Vit E supplementation induced positive cognitive changes in patients with mild to moderate AD.
• It is suggested that selenium, Vit C and beta carotene are also taken as supplements as they are low in the blood.
• Aluminium, mercury and cadnium are higher in patients with AD. To remove from the body take Silicon, Selenium and Cucurmin( Turmeric).
• Ginkgo a herb has been shown to improve blood flow to the brain and thus is helpful for mild cognitive impairement and dementia. 
• Nutrients to help prevent Alzheimer's are the B vitamins, Glutathione, zinc, Vit D and magnesium. 
• And The Mediterranean diet is the best diet to be at least risk of cognitive decline.

Quote of the Quarter

'The generosity of your time is the most valuable gift you can give' - Outback Wisdiom by Sara Henderson

Wishing you a wonderful Xmas and New Year whether in Sydney or elsewhere in the world. 

To your good health and happiness.

Penny Wade

Massage Therapist and herbalist